rearended today

[ricoman]

Slowing down to stop so a semi could back out of a driveway onto the street, 4 or 5 cars stopped in front in my lane and maybe that many in the next
WHAM! got it from behind, pushed me 60 ft or so, stayed upright. Probably because the rear fender where the license plate is, was on top of the rear tire and that slowed me in a hurry.
Am a little pissed I didn't see it coming because I believe the rear views are to be used every 60 sec.
Got off the bike and ran back to the car which was in reverse and moving away from me! Could not call 911 as my cell phone was in the right side bag now about a hundred feet up the street. Told the driver, who was on the phone, to call 911-he said "I know the number" and he got real smart ass with me (was not calling 911 by the way) said it again-no response. Then I told him to tell the dispatcher the driver he hit was irate and to send them quick. Still nothing, fortunately a lady driving by saw what happened and made the call. Then I asked (told) the driver to remain in his car, begged him in fact, as I was very concerned what I may do if he did get out.
Para medics came-I felt nothing except anger, I guess the adrenaline blocks everything else. Cops came and escorted the guy off to the side. Seems he was driving with a suspended licesnse, 2 outstanding tickets, has no insurance, and does not own the car.
My 98 std (new fork seals, new front/rear bearings, new dampners) now sits at the dealer (2 blocks away and who sent a trailer to pick me up-great folks at Haps Honda) with what appears to be a bent frame(there is more room between the rear tire and fender than on a GS 1200 BMW!)
We'll see what the ins. says-I may be in the market for my second Valk.
Moral-expect anything and be ever so thankful when you walk away from one!. 

[hubcapsc]

Glad you're OK... good luck with the insurance...

-Mike

[Challenger]

And that's the last you will ever see of that guy probably. Sorry to hear of the accident, glad your OK,

[RainMaker]

Sorry to hear of your accident but very happy you were able to walk away from it.  Get checked out, though - that would have been quite a shock on your neck and back.

[roboto65]

Man glad you are OK !!!!

[eric in md]

glad your ok.. close one .   really i want that bike if they total it... buy it back i will come and get it i would love to have a wild standard .. for around town   thanks eric

[DIGGER]

CAN'T BELIEVE YOU TOOK A HIT LIKE THAT AND DIDN'T GO DOWN!!!! GOOD JOB...SORRY ABOTU THE BIKE.

last year a guy here at work was broadsided by an illegal alien and totaled his truck.   the cops got there and asked the guy if he had any insurance and the illegal produced somepaperwork and the cop looked at it and the cop looked up and said "this is a life insurance policy".    my friend looked at the cop and said "hang on to it.....he's gonna need it".....he then proceeded to try and attack the guy and the cops had to restrain him.....ha

[Chrisj CMA]

ya did good, the fat lady saved your life, she sacrificed all.   I hope the driver goes to jail

[Russell Rice]

Very glad to hear that you are ok.
+1 on going to get checked out. I was hit head on refused treatment by medics because I was walking around in circles ( crying because I had 2 payments left on my bike and I had just finished getting it where I wanted it) looking at my bike. I figured that I could walk so why go to hospital, not bleeding and nothing hurt but my feelings. A week later I did go to the doc and found out that my leg was infact broken and did some damage to the nerves in my right wrist.
Always argue with the insurance on what they are going to pay you for the bike and waite a year if need be for them to pay you off on it.
I bought my 97 standard for $8500 and they just wanted to give me $3000 for it and charge me $2400 to buy it back
I did waite almost a year to settle and I ended up getting $8600 for the bike plus tag title and taxes and bought it back for $1200. I then sold most of the bike on the internet and made $8000.
Good luck with yours and I hope you make out like I did.

[Cliff]

Thankful you are ok!!!!

[donaldcc]

Glad you are OK!!  Good time to check and increase your uninsured motorist coverage.

[alph]

I don't mean to be a dick, but seriously, call a lawyer.  I had a friend get hit by a guy that pulled out in front of him, he had no choice but to broadside the guy, totaled his valk, luckily walked away from it all, but still some people don't learn if they don't lose any money.  Sue em good!

[Daniel Meyer]

Sounds like a heck of a hit! Glad you stayed up!

[Robert]

Unless you have collision you will either pay your self or have to sue him. I cant believe he didn't drive off you had 2 miracles one your alive 2 the cops got the guy. glad your ok.

[NITRO]

Glad you're okay!

Like it was said, don't settle for less than what you believe the bike is worth-- they'll try to stick you with a low offer.

Also, I don't know if this is a possibility now, but you might want to strip your accessories off the bike. I took mine home after my accident and Alph helped me remove everything worth keeping. We then dropped it off at the dealership and told them all the other parts were lost in the wreck.

[john]

sixty feet ...  scary     

 " because I believe the rear views are to be used every 60 sec."
and how is that work'in for ya ...     ???
i hate it when that happens ...     
i was lucky ... just a tap ... cost her a thousand bucks ...     
i saw it come'in ...     
she drove away  ....           fellow valkyrie riders made her stop ...     
i look every few seconds  ...
especially when ever i have to stop ... might be some dickhead on a cell phone
behind me ... or play'in with the radio ... or  put'in on makeup ... or  blah  blah  blah

[elraque]

Dittos on pretty much everything else that was said here... Hoping the fat lady is repairable (I know how attached we get to that "special one..." )

REALLY glad you're okay, hoping for the best outcome for ya.

[Karen]

You're probably better off that you didn't see it coming & tense up, a lot more damage from that. Please get checked out, the bike will be repairable or replaceable. Glad that you are able to write and let us know, that is a good thing. Please take care & keep us posted.

[Jess from VA]

Glad you're OK. 

Make sure you go to his traffic court date with a list of damages and out of pocket expenses.

If you get nothing else...... at least get his name and address.

You know.... for future reference.

[highcountry]

Man, that just plain SUCKS!  Glad you are OK and hope your carrier does you right.

[Billy]

That sucks. Kudos to you for staying upright for 60 feet when your packed in stopped traffic. Amazing. Lucky the perp didn't hit anyone else since he was going fast enough to knock you down the road the way he did.

[Wingman]

I'm so glad you are okay! Bikes are tough to control when struck from the rear...

I'm not sure where the 60 second rear view check comes from, but I would reconsider that notion if I were you. Bad guys behind you are not going to wait for a specific window of time to act up, and the mirrors may not give you enough warning, but at that interval, they certainly won't!

Good luck getting your money out of the deadbeat and be happy he didn't hurt you!

[RoadKill]

You are in 1 piece...that's the expensive part !  You can not kill a Valkyrie, so that will work out too.
Just glad you made it thru' well, the machine you were on is WAY tougher and she gladly sacrificed herself.  Remember that getting back on is the hard part....just "DO IT" it's worth it!

[Valkahuna]

Bikes can be repaired or replaced. It was not your time to go. You now have another "birthday" to celebrate. Congratulations on keeping your cool and handling the situation as you did.

+1 on getting yourself checked out, and don't be too anxious to settle with your or any other insurance companies, unless you have something in writing reserving the right to add to the damages!

[Jabba]

Glad you're OK.  Obviously the guy is a POS. 

Probably better for your blood pressure if you just let it go.  Although I would not be able to.  If he didn't have any $$ he'd be making payments to me for the rest of his miserable life.

Jabba

[SANDMAN5]

Glad you're OK!!!!

[Normandog]

Good job keeping the bike upright. Most glad you are OK   

[Slyk Willy]

That really sucks! So sorry for the problem, but glad you're OK. This is happening way too often.

[Ice]

Glad to hear that your OK, I can understand the pissed part too, good on you that you did not do a vent window extraction on the guy. I do not know if I could have kept that much control.
Wish you the best of luck with the Ins.

Yuri

[Spirited-6]

Glad you are OK. Don`t know how you able to stay up and On after a hit like that. I think this is a "fear factor" with all bikers at any stop. 
Good luck in getting back on a Valkyrie.

[Chili Pepper]

Wow. Glad you came out of it okay and fine job on keeping her upright through it all. Same sort of thing happened to a friend of ours (except the idjit slammed into the car behind our friend and forced HER car into the back of the bike, hitting it hard enough to eject our friend from the seat). He's been in a fair amount of pain ever since. I hope you don't have any hidden injuries. Wouldn't hurt to get checked out just in case.

[cutter]

Glad to hear your alright. That's is the same thing that happened to me when I had the wing. The difference was he had insurance and just got his truck out of the body shop that week    He was on his cell when he nailed me........ 

[Walküre]

+1 on the "glad you're ok!!".

All good advice - have yourself checked out, and don't settle until you are 100%.

They WILL try to low-ball you and your bike. Hold to your guns. My Jeep Liberty they started at $8K, when it was done, it was over $11K. And that was MY insurance company, paying me before going after the other company, and the other company was at fault. So, I wouldn't trust ANY one. They also started at $2,000 plus all medical, ended up $7500 and all medical. So, I stood to lose $8500, from MY insurance company! And they weren't even paying for it.

I'd recommend starting to get "comparison" pricing, from ebay, etc, on a number of Valk's in very similar condition. The day they did a check on my Liberty, there happened to be one, for $3,000, along with two at ~$11,000. So they averaged, and the $3,000 dropped it WAY down, to just over $8K. I produced about a month's worth of pricing, which took it back up to $10,500, and they accepted that. Then I produced receipts with almost a grand worth of new tires, etc, and they split that with me, taking it to $11,000. Be persistent, and do your groundwork.

Best of luck!! Hope you get back on the road soon, and without any hassles.

R

[sugerbear]

i told my ins co to call any "power sport honda dealer" and check for themselves.

they called a couple and decided my 99 I/S was worth a lot more then their "book value"(they wrote the book). ended up getting 12,000 for it(5 yrs ago). so stick to your guns and don't back down.

glad your ok, but still get checked out.

[Duckwheat]

Glad you are OK.

Have you ever noticed how bad luck seems to follow dumb asses (driver that hit you). Probably will not be held accountable, because he has nothing.

Thankful you are ok.

DW

[thewoodman]

Sure glad that you're OK, Dave. I was just talking with another rider yesterday about the same thing since we both had been T-Boned. Neither of us were hurt badly. I paid for repairs myself since, like you, the driver had no license, drove a car she did not own with no insurance and spent the weekend in jail; after which both she and the car disappeared! But what pi$$ed me off the most was that I didn't see it coming since it was a low speed punch in a local hospital parking lot. You might want to re-think your 60 second rule in stopping situations as it applies to you.

Being rear ended is what spooks me the most. Folks doing all the above [texting, talking, eating, make-up, finger nails] don't realize they are driving a 2 ton weapon faster than they can they can think and react. Too many people are watching too much Nascar and figure they are WAY better drivers than they really are.

I was rear ended once 40 years ago and the hurt didn't show up until the second day. At least HAPS will take good care of you. Doggonit, Dave, didn't you just part out another fat girl a few months ago? Thank goodness you're alright. Let me know if you need anything.

TheWoodman

[KY,Dave (AKA Misunderstood)]

Glad you're OK... good luck with the insurance...

-Mike

Ditto that

-Dave (couldn't say it any better)

[ricoman]

I am grateful and touched by the replies, especially since I don't know many of you.
Hit the ER, catscan found nothing (my wife agreed-my head is empty!).
Major headache all day-aspirin only, don't believe in major drugs (not since the 60's!!)
Sore? oh yeah
Pissed -oh yes. Had calls from the vehicle owner's ins. and they will look at the bike which is now at the local dealer with in excess of a $5200 damage estimate in parts alone (labor probably 1700+). It may be a total for them. Actually I hope so because I will not be comfortable on a bike with frame damage- and who knows about the drivetrain?
The really, really irritating part of this is that the ahole who hit me and thought about driving away and who would not make the 911 call gets off without taking responsibility for his actions. The car owner's ins. co. has the bills and the slimebag goes on his merry way. I see something wrong with this picture. As a matter of principal I am checking into what I can do to get this guy to belly up.
What probably saved my behind was the fact that the rear wheel was locked up by the fender being pushed into it so it did not roll. The lic. plate was on top of the rear wheel still attached to the fender. I was literally slid down the road-had the wheel  rolled I would likely have gone down.
Iwill meet the ins. co. tomorrow to discuss the bike and repairs or?, and also they want to discuss my "injuries". At my tender age there is no way I will sign off on no injury claims. Hell, at my age it can take days to remember something, much less anything else!
I am deeply touched and very grateful for all the kind words and encouragement you all have shown me.

[RainMaker]

Hit the ER, catscan found nothing (my wife agreed-my head is empty!).

I was also rear-ended (in 2001) but fortunately they hit my saddlebag so the bike actually took a hit but no frame damage.  Had to have all the plastics replaced (trunk, bags, fairing, pods, etc) from the subsequent rolling around and sliding on the highway from the 55mph+ speed.  But that's not the point - I went to the hospital, got a cat scan, all was empty (like you). Xrays, everything. Stayed overnight but they told me nothing wrong, go home.  But I felt a grinding so went to my regular doctor 2 weeks later and found out my collarbone was broken, had nerve damage on my left arm as well as damage to my neck vertebrae.  After 4 months, healed up and the nerve damage was mitigated by lots of therapy.  My neck will eventually have to be fused but for now, it's OK. Dealer finished repairing bike about a week after my doctor cleared me to ride, so I got back on and rode. Still riding and will until I get too old, then will buy a gOld Wing.

The point is, have your family doctor, the one who knows you, do a really complete check.  CAT scan proved I had no cats in me but that's about it.  The damage can be hidden so do a really good check with your primary physician.  Don't discount any pain or numbness.  If you think something isn't working right, it probably isn't.

As for being grateful and touched by the replies since you "don't know many of" us, it's just that we haven't met yet.  We are all your brothers and sisters in the ValkyrieHood.

Take care.

[musclehead]

I don't mean to be a dick, but seriously, call a lawyer.  I had a friend get hit by a guy that pulled out in front of him, he had no choice but to broadside the guy, totaled his valk, luckily walked away from it all, but still some people don't learn if they don't lose any money.  Sue em good!

thats not being a dick, thats good advice. the point of suing is to be made whole and from the 'tude already recieved from the future defendant your going to need a lawyer.

if things aren't made right I'd run straight to a barrister